Senator Collins on WVOM- on Supreme Court nominee

Senator Collins was on WVOM this morning with Ric Tyler and George Hale, below is a clip via AsMaineGoes.com:

Senator Collins welcomes Coast Guard Commandant to Maine

Senator Collins welcomed USCG Commandant Admiral Thad W. Allen to Maine on Tuesday. They toured Bath Iron Works, Hodgon Defense Composites in Boothbay, and the Coast Guard Station in Rockland.
The video below is from their departure at Knox County Regional Airport in Owls Head, in a Coast Guard HH60J Jayhawk helicopter.

Washington Post: A Horse and Pony Show

From Dana Milbank's column in the Washington Post:

Lawmakers, the saying goes, are either workhorses or show horses. As they debated the economic stimulus package yesterday, senators took this truism a step further: The workhorses and the show horses split into rival herds and began whinnying at each other.

The workhorses -- an ad hoc group of 18 moderates and dealmakers from both parties -- holed up in a committee room on the third floor of the Dirksen Building, tossed out their staff and got to work on a compromise plan that could get bipartisan support.

The workhorses, taking a lunch break so some of them could confer with the White House about the compromise, were pleased with their labors.

The show horses -- including the leadership of both parties -- gave speeches on the Senate floor and news conferences either to trade blame for partisan deadlock or to denounce the Group of 18's dealmaking efforts.

"It is unusual to think of senators actually doing that kind of painstaking, thorough work," said Susan Collins (Maine), leader of the Republican workhorses.

Read the whole column

AP: U.S. Senators From Maine To Meet With President Obama

from the Associated Press, via WMTW:

Senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins will meet with President Barack Obama on Wednesday.

The meeting comes as centrists in both parties seek to clear away spending items that won't jump start the economy right away.

Read the whole article

Press Herald: Maine Senators at center of stimulus negotiations

from Dieter Bradbury at the Portland Press Herald:

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe are playing key roles as the Senate struggles to fashion an economic stimulus package that enjoys bipartisan support.

The two Maine Republicans, moderates with a willingness to work with Democrats, are deeply involved in negotiations to shape a bill that blends tax cuts and targeted spending.

They will meet with President Obama in the White House today as part of a group of senators summoned to discuss the stimulus. Both agree that a stimulus is needed, but both have expressed concerns about the $819 billion bill passed by the House last week.

Snowe and Collins said the House bill, and the $885 billion Senate version drafted by Democratic leaders, include spending provisions that would not boost the economy. They said they wanted to see a more streamlined, amended proposal with spending targeted to quick economic benefits.

Read the whole article